Flexible collapsible handle with concealed hardware



June 3, 1969 G, w, BUSH 3,447,193

FLEXIBLE COLLAPSIBLE HANDLE WITH CONCEALED HARDWARE Filed July 21. y1967 wml/fa?. GEORGE w. BUSHl United States Patent Oce 3,447,193 Patented June 3, 1969 3,447,193 FLEXIBLE COLLAPSIBLE HANDLE WITH CONCEALED HARDWARE George W. Bush, Haddonlield, NJ., assignor to Philadelphia Handle Company, Inc., Camden, NJ., a corporation of New Jersey Filed July 21, 1967, Ser. No. 655,029 Int. Cl. E051) /00; A47b 95/02; A471' 45 06 U.S. Cl. 16-115 9 Claims ABSTRACT 0F THE DISCLOSURE A collapsible handle for a carrying case made of a flexible handgrip having an outer soft sheath and an inner stiffer leaf spring with hardware to slidably attach the handgrip to the carrying case inwardly of its ends to substantially conceal the attaching means, the hardware including members extending through slots in said sheath and spring and crossheads on the members traversing the slots and means to eiect attachment of the hardware to the wall of the case whereby the crossheads are automatically retained in their slot-traversing positions.

This invention relates to collapsible handles for all types of carrying cases, luggage and the like of the type wherein the arched carrying position and flattened noncarrying position is -attained by the exibility of the handle rather than by pivotal connections of the handle to the carrying case.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a flexible collapsible handle of the character described with a means to slidably attach the handgrip adjacent its ends to the wall of a carrying case that assures nonseparation of the handgrip from the attaching means during assembly and thus eiects savings in the manufacture of the handle as well as increasing the security of the handle.

Another object of the invention is to provide a exible collapsible handle of the character described in which the handgrip is in the form of a sheath with a stitfer leaf spring therein and means, including members extending through slots in the sheath and spring adjacent the ends 0f the handgrip, to attach the handgrip to the wall of the carrying case so that in the arched carrying position the members -abut the stiffer leaf spring not the softer sheath,

Another object of the invention is to provide a flexible collapsible handle in which the attaching means includes members extending through slots adjacent the ends of a tubular handgrip and crossheads on the members traversing the slots in the assembled position, the -attaching means including screws extending through the wall of the carrying case and further means to automatically assure the slot-tarversing positions of the crossheads the handgrip when closure nuts are tightened on the screws.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide -a flexible collapsible handle which is so attached to a carrying case as to cause the handgrip to be releasably retained in its arched carrying position `by frictional engagements of its ends with the wall of the carrying case.

These and other objects of the invention will become more apparent as the following description proceeds in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the handle showing the flattened noncarrying position thereof;

FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 showing the raised position of the handle;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional View taken on the line 3--3 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken on the line 4--4 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of FIG. 3;

FIG. y6 is a perspective view of the attaching means of FIGS. 1-5;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the line 7-7 of FIG. 2; f

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken on the line 8-8 of FIG. 7;

FIG, 9 is a sectional view taken on the line 9--9 of FIG. 7; and

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a modied form of attaching means.

Specic reference is now made to the drawings wherein similar reference characters are used for corresponding elements throughout.

The handle is generally indicated at 10 and includes' a handgrip 12 and attaching means 14 which is generally concealed in both the flattened noncarrying position shown in FIG. 1 and the arched carrying position shown in FIG. 2. The handgrip is formed of a tubular sheath having an upper wall 16, end walls 18, Ia bottom wall 20 and side walls 22 which provide an inner cavity or bore 24. A pair of slots 26 of predetermined length are cut through the bottom wall and are spaced inwardly of the end walls 18. The sheath is made of a ilexible relatively soft material such as vinyl plastics and the like, suitably colored and textured.

Extending in the bore 24 of the sheath is a at leaf spring 28 which is stiffer than the sheath and preferably made of spring steel. It is preferably substantially coextensive with the bore 24 and includes slots 30 shaped like and substantially as large as the sheath slots 26 but are offset therefrom as that the outer edge 32 of the slot 30 is spaced inwardly of the outer edge 34 of the sheath slot 26 for a purpose soon to appear.

The form of attaching means 14 shown in FIGS. 1-9 comprises a bar 36 adapted to bear against the wall 38. At one end the bar is provided with a dependent lug or protuberance, 40 and at its other end with an upwardly extending relatively flat shank 42 which carries' a crosshead 44 that is offset outwardly of the plane of the shank 42. The length of the crosshead 44 exceeds the width of the slots 26 and 30. A headed screw 46 is staked into bar 36.

In assembly, the crosshead 44 of each attaching means or hardware 14 is rst aligned with the slots 26 and 30, extended therethrough and turned so that the crossheads ultimately traverse the slots as shown in the figures, In this position the shanks 42 extend through the slots 26 and 30 and the crossheads 44 are positioned in the bore 24 of the sheath above the spring 28. In lthis position, each screw 56 is extended through an aperture 48 in the case wall 38 while the protuberance 40 is extended into another aperture 50 in the case wall 38. In so doing the slot-traversing positions of the crossheads 44 are maintained while closure nuts' 52 are screwed home on the screws 46. Thus one cannot change the proper positions of the crossheads while attaching the hardware to the case.

In the arched carrying position shown in FIGS. 2, 7, 8 and 9, the Shanks 42 abut the edges 32 of the slots 30 of the stiffer leaf spring 28 and not the softer tubular sheath and the spring takes the load. When the slots 26 and 30 are spaced inwardly of the ends 18 of the handgrip at predetermined distances, the lower edges 54 of the ends 18 of the handgrip can frictionally engage the case wall 38 and releasably retain the handgrip in its arched carrying position.

In the modification shown in FIG. 10, the attaching means takes the form of a screw 56 which carries but extends through a bar 58 which also carries a protuberance in the form of a pin 60 that is spaced from the screw, the latter carrying a crosshead 62 spaced above the bar. Thus'after the crossheads 62 are aligned with the slots 26 and 30, extended therethrough and turned so that they traverse the slots, each screw 56 is passed through the aperture 48 in the case wall and each pin 60 is passed into the aperture S0 in the case wall, thus fixing the crosshead position, and the closure nut 52 is screwed home. In this modification, it will be the screws 56 that will abut the edges 32 of the leaf spring slots 30 when the handgrip is raised to its arched carrying position.

While preferred embodiments of the invention have been here shown and described, it will be understood that skilled'ar'tisans may make minor variations Without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. A collapsible handle for a carrying case comprising an elongated flexible handgrip including a exible soft sheath and an inner leaf spring of stiffer material, slots in said sheath and spring adjacent the ends of Said handgrip, and means to slidably secure said handgrip on the carrying case including members extending through said slots, crossheads on said members traversing said slots and bearing on said leaf spring inwardly of said sheath and means to secure said members nonrotationally on the wall of the carrying case so that said crossheads are retained in their proper slot-traversing positions during assembly.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said last-named means includes a bar carried by said member and a protuberance spaced from said member yand entering an aperture provided in the wall of the carrying case so that when said protuberance enters said aperture and said bar is secured on said wall, said crosshead on said member automatically assumes said slot-traversing position.

3. The combination of claim 2 and a screw which extends through said bar and through a second aperture provided in said wall to receive a closure nut which can be tightened to secure said bar on said wall without changing said slot-traversing position of said crosshead 4. The combination of claim 2 wherein said member includes a ilat shank extending from one end of said bar in a direction opposite to said protuberance.

5. The combination of claim 4 wherein said crosshead is carried at the free end of said shank and offset outw-ardly of the plane thereof.

6. The combination of claim 4 and a headed screw extending through said bar and through a second aperture in said wall to receive a closure nut which can be tightened to secure said bar on said wall without changing said slot-traversing position of said crosshead.

7. The combination of claim 1 wherein the outer ends of said slots in said spring members are spaced inwardly of the outer ends of the corresponding slots in said sheath so that when the handgrip is arched upwardly to the carrying position, said members extending through said slots will abut the stiffer spring member and not the softer sheath.

8. The combination of claim 1 wherein said sheath is made of plastic and said leaf spring of steel.

9. The combination of claim 1 wherein said slots in said sheath and spring are spaced inwardly of the ends of said handgrip `a distance sufficient to cause frictional engagement of the ends of said handgrip and the wall of the carrying case when the handgrip is arched upwardly to the carrying position to releasably retain said handgrip in said carrying position.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,723,417 1l/l955 Furholmen 16--115 1,495,752 5/1924 La Rue 16--115 BOBBY R. GAY, Primary Examiner.

DORIS L. TROUTMAN, Assistant Examiner. 

